KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — State media reports that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has arrived in Kabul on his first trip to Afghanistan as Pentagon chief, amid swirling questions about how long American troops will remain in the country. State-owned Radio and Television Afghanistan and popular TOLO Television reported Austin’s arrival Sunday in Kabul from India. He met with senior Afghan government officials, including President Ashraf Ghani. President Joe Biden said last week in an ABC News interview that it will be “tough” for the U.S. to meet a May 1 deadline to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. But he said that if the deadline, which is laid out in an agreement between former President Donald Trump’s administration and the Taliban, is extended, it wouldn’t be by a “lot longer.”
US defense chief arrives in Kabul on 1st trip to Afghanistan
